It seems like we are in uncharted territory:
Working from home, keeping the household moving...and doing it all while helping our kids pass 5th-grade math.
There was a point in my years as an interior designer that the wheels nearly fell off. Running an interior design business while raising kids and teenagers was…well, hectic.
I’m not even going to pretend that it was pretty. I may or may not have forgotten to pick up a kid from practice...or bowed ENTIRELY out of room-mom-parental-involvement stuff for about 5 years straight.
And that wasn’t in the middle of a pandemic.
But automation in my business is how I got through it, along with some gritting-of-teeth.
My kids are basically grown, and I’m no longer juggling the circus-that-was-my-life for many years...but I’m going to pass on a few biz-simplification hacks to you. (But you may be on your own with 5th-grade math. 😬)
There are ways that automation can save your sanity in the middle of a pandemic or otherwise.
We are also going to look at a few things that shouldn’t be automated, in my opinion.
This may seem “elementary, my dear” to some (I may have just shown my age with that reference,) but entrepreneurs are varied and complex. Everyone is working at a different comfort level with technology, so this is for everyone.
Without further adieu, let’s dive in.
Things You Should Automate or Simplify Now
Appointments
Do you know the life-cycle of each client transaction, from the initial contact, all the way through testimonial?
If your business frequently requires similar types of appointments or meetings, use an app like Calendly or Dubsado to automate this for you.
Get your life back by skipping the 20 text messages or emails, and send them a scheduling link instead. It’s magical.
It syncs with your calendar and has intuitive rule-setting for scheduling appointments.
Including the type of appointment for the Zoom-ers.
You can also place links on your website or in your email signature, for people to schedule time with you.
And you know what? PEOPLE LOVE IT.
Go Paperless
I am always surprised to find out how many small business owners are still using excessive paper.
Paper for client receipts and invoices, gathering contact info, project management, brainstorming, research, etc.
Listen. There is a woman who will not be named, that still uses a paper planner for running her home life and business because SHE LIKES TO MARK THINGS OFF THE LIST USING A PEN WITH HER HAND, OK. This is not what I’m referencing.
I’m talking about working at an event and hand-writing receipts. Or a 10 person company operating on a combination of computers and printed paper, duplicating work.
Whatever type of business you are in, there is a way to limit paper. Do a deep-dive on your processes and see where you are using unnecessary paper.
You might be surprised how much simpler, and on-the-go your life could be.
Social Media Integrations
Being present on social media is an important aspect of doing business in the current market. But it doesn’t have to swallow up your entire life.
Any time you post to Instagram, set it up to automatically share to your business FB page, Twitter, and Pinterest (depending on your industry.)
Using Zapier or IFTTT, you can even trigger your content to post to LinkedIn.
Social media management is a full-time job--and if you’re a solopreneur you may not have the time, or resources to pay someone yet. This is where automation is your best friend.
Customer Follow-Up and Welcome Sequences
This is a biggie. Whatever email platform you use, the ways you follow up with new subscribers and potential clients are...well, important.
It's so important in fact, that it is worth spending the time and even money to get it right.
A simple, sterile opt-in is okay, but it won’t set you apart from the crowd--and it won’t keep your ideal client engaged. And a list of 5,000 subscribers means nothing without captivation and engagement.
Even worse: there are apps and tools on the market designed specifically to hide marketing emails in an inbox.
If you’d like to chat with me about setting your business up for success with welcome emails and sequences, click here.
But just know that we take in an estimated 34GB of information a day. Our brains are becoming more and more optimized to scroll, scan, ignore and decode.
A quality, engaging welcome sequence is key to customer attraction--and the best part? Once it is set up, the work is done.
Think of it as someone you’ve hired part-time to make follow-up phone calls for you--but without the overhead.
File Management on Your Phone
Do you even Dropbox, bruh?
Once I discovered this beautiful little thing called Dropbox Syncing, my life changed. But no really...those with Dropbox never have to worry about dropping their phone in a toilet (or the dog knocking a glass of water onto her phone 🙋♀️) again.
And you don’t have to plug your phone in and download everything off of it.
Each photo or video that you take with your phone can be synced into a Dropbox account, and you can just go on living your best life. Never having to download photos from your phone again.
Some of you may be using Iphoto Streaming, and I have to say I’m just not a fan. But that’s me.
If you run a business that requires photos (which most of us are,) having a good Dropbox syncing situation is such a life-saver.
Contracts, Signatures, Invoicing and Getting Paid
In a past life, I used many different programs to keep me going.
Freshbooks is what I used for time-tracking, invoicing, and payments. Contracts and signatures came out of my design software. Trello is fabulous for project management. All were great and helped me in millions of ways.
But internet years are like dog years. That was years ago, and there are some great platforms now.
I could go into the pros and cons of many, but today I’m going to point you to Dubsado.
I’m fairly new to Dubsado, but what I’m seeing is...well, for a systems enthusiast like me: breathtaking.
There is nearly nothing you can’t build into the system. Here's a tiny list of things that can be set up:
Workflows
Canned email responses
Opt-in forms
Contracts and proposals
Getting paid
Referral systems
...it’s the Cadillac of business management in my opinion.
There is a learning curve, but they make up for that in the fact that it is free for up to 3 clients. No one is paying me for an endorsement, by the way, I’ve just recently become a Superfan.
Things To Avoid Automating
Social Media Engagement
You can’t automate engagement. Not naturally, and organically anyway.
That needs to be you: your brain, your response, your heart, your personality. It’s social media...not post-and-ghost media.
There are some great resources out there about engagement best practices. But I like Hilary Rushford’s work in this area. She maps out how to work on engagement sustainably.
Find her Instagram courses here.
Client Retention and Testimonials
Ah, social proof and testimonials. Arguably one of the most important assets of any service-based business.
Let’s face it, we live in a Yelp kind of world. Reviews, testimonials, and public perception are like a credit score for your business.
We all need to focus as much on client retention and gathering testimonials, as we do business development.
Unfortunately, it’s not something that you can automate. Well, you can, but you need to have your hand on the pulse of the entire business transaction either way.
Disgruntled clients want a place to take their opinion--which makes automation particularly dangerous for entrepreneurs and solopreneurs. Automating either the asking for or the posting of testimonials is a bad idea, wherever you can control it.
What you can do is have systems in place that remind you to send a testimonial request once an action has been taken. (Again, Dubsado has you covered here with workflows.)
Actions such as when a project is approved, a week after an invoice has been paid, or scheduled work is completed.
Either way, I wouldn’t set up a system that sends out testimonial requests without your involvement. And how you respond to poor reviews on sites where it’s out of your control, can really set you apart from the competition. Hmmm…another blog, another day, maybe?
Over-Filtering Your Email
Ever have one of those catastrophic incidents that make you just log off, drive straight to a friend’s house, and ask them to pour you a glass of wine? No? Just me?
Let me tell you a cautionary tale. When I built my original e-commerce site in 2010 I was using a web host with horrible service.
I will not tell you what company, but I will say that I was an e-commerce novice and didn’t see what was ahead of me.
After 5 years, this particular* incident was the last straw, and I immediately changed my web host. They were handling my email, and I discovered that a forwarding mechanism wasn’t working.
Everything was set up correctly...but what I discovered by accident was that I had 5 or 6 years’ worth of contact emails getting buried in a weird filter.
Not kidding. Years’ worth of customers contacting me about my products, and inquiring about services that I hadn’t seen.
You can see why I panicked. And cried. Solopreneurs have it hard, and I’m just here for y’all, blazing the trail. ✌️
Filters, email extensions, and sorting systems are great. But be very, very careful using and installing them. Test everything. Then re-test everything.
In Conclusion
This is only the tip of the iceberg of ways that I keep things as automated as possible. I’m a firm believer in creating a work/life balance that yields a sense of abundance.
And we all have busy, demanding lives that reach far beyond what we do for a living. Especially right now.
Busy-ness and hustle culture are overrated. But anyone willing to put in a little effort to set up automation will feel their shoulders un-tense.
A little.
What’s your favorite time-saving automation or software?